Katharine Carl was a talented artist who had one of the most unique and surreal trips abroad ever.

When asked by the wife of the American ambassador to China if she’d be interested in painting a portrait of the Empress Dowager Cixi, she agreed, thinking it would be an intriguing venture. The assignment became one of the most charming and memorable experiences of her life.

Having heard the rumors about the Empress Dowager, she had expected to meet a harsh or intimidating figure. She was blindsided when instead, she met one of the most fascinating and pleasant personalities she’d ever had the pleasure to observe up close. Carl found the Empress Dowager to be so beautiful and charming that she surprised herself by being moved to kiss her hand. This became her customary greeting to the Empress Dowager during her stay in the Imperial Palace. 

Carl went on to get to know the Empress quite well. She was the only foreigner to stay as a guest in the Forbidden City during the Imperial Dynasty. After the first portrait sitting, the Empress was pleased with her work and invited her to stay and do sittings during her down time. For the first few months, the sittings were a routine of one hour in the morning and one half hour in the evening and the Empress insisted that Carl ceased working when she was not there to pose so as not to tire herself. Unlike European monarchs, such as Henry VIII, who were more accustomed to having their portrait done, the Empress was the first Chinese monarch to be painted, so the sittings were different than Carl had anticipated. 

Though eager to attend to her work as much as possible, Carl delighted in experiencing life in the Imperial Palaces — the court moved between three separate palaces over the course of her stay — and remained as a guest for nine months, completing a total of four portraits of the Empress. 

The first time that Carl ever saw any sign of displeasure towards her on the Empress’s face was when the Empress’s prized dogs, who normally ignored all others but her, became very friendly with Carl upon their first meeting. Not long after this, Carl started visiting the Empress’ dogs on a daily basis. They were all well-bred, beautiful dogs, some Carl theorized as being of the same breed as King Charles’ spaniels. She was under the impression that no one but the few attendants who watched over the dogs was aware of her routine. She especially bonded with one dog in particular and was surprised by the Empress at dinner one evening when presented with the puppy as a gift. The dog was named Melah meaning “Golden Amber” and followed Carl wherever she went as her new constant companion. 

Carl had originally intended to never write about her experiences, as laws of Chinese etiquette and propriety valued discretion and privacy about the inner workings of the Imperial Palace. But upon returning home, she found that she was being quoted in multiple papers for disparaging comments towards the Empress with words that she had never said. Wishing to combat the "fake news" and set the record straight about the woman she had grown so fond of, she wrote a memoir titled "With the Empress Dowager."